Very fun time at minibar () dc

Was in dc for the weekend and was lucky enough to snag the last open reservation of the month on the friday I was in town. Even though it’s a bit dated I really love this style of molecular gastronomy/modernist cuisine that is kind of hard to find now (obsessed with Alinea, moto, wd~50 etc as a kid) and wasn’t disappointed by minibar’s.

You start in a very nice chic lounge and are offered a few glasses of champagne (I think bollinger) as a staff member gives your party a quick interview – confirming allergies and special occasions, explaining the pairing options etc – before they open a curtain and you’re seated at the 12-seat L-shaped chef’s counter. I was lucky enough to sit in the middle of the L and had a great view of the kitchen.

The food was excellent — fun and gimmicky in all the right ways with whimsical elements like various foams and jellies, liquid nitrogen-ified bites, aromatic gases, and emulsifications. My favorite in this regard was the jamon iberico croquette — I had expected it to be a normal croquette like the ones I had from Boqueria the day before but it was filled with tapioca created from a jamon consommé. Somehow it worked. I also liked the beet blini, perfectly earthy, creamy, and sweet, and the soy chicharron with uni, which had a really nice textural contrast. The scallop and black cod were also the best I’ve ever had and the trio of squab dishes were really tasty as well. Both desserts, the mango sticky rice and ice cream-filled donut, were unreal. There were a few courses I didn’t love — the aonori taco was a bit salty and the frozen cauliflower with caviar was too cold with a weird mouthfeel. I also wish there was at least one more protein as I left a bit hungry.

It was also just a very fun meal. I liked the communal format and making friends with the people sitting on either side of us. I also love chef’s counters and seeing everything prepared in front of us (and even getting fed a course by hand). The cocktails were from barmini next door so they were inventive and delicious as well. The service was also excellent — very attentive but still unobtrusive. They offered my girlfriend a shawl when they saw she was cold and even gave her a tour of the kitchen, while the meal was in progress, while she was waiting for the bathroom. At the end of the meal they gave every party that was celebrating something these fun glasses of rosé and an instant camera and went down the table announcing each occasion with everyone clapping it up.

Overall a lovely time and worth every penny for me. Not an ad but I also was able to get like $300 off paying in the inkind app which was really nice as well. Not every course shown bc of photo limit btw